I'll Be Watching the "Pro Bowe"

As the offseason has been so dreadfully forced upon us lowly Chiefs fans, one week later than normally, we luckily have some players to watch in the Pro Bowl a few weeks from now, as Brian Waters, Jamaal Charles (if he's not "hurting" :-) and Dwayne "Pro" Bowe will strap it on one more time and do some work.  I will be watching all of these players closely, as I want to see how much Waters has left in the tank and the poetry in motion that is Charles, but I will be watching Bowe for other reasons, this not being one of them.

courtesy of terezowens.com

I will initially give a shout out to AP member 1kmilesfromkc, as he wrote a very interesting post, seen here, dicussing adding a top end WR to the team.  Most would think that it would be to give the offense another playmaker to go along with Bowe.  However, he also suggests trading Bowe; most comments made about this very notion didn't agree with this idea.  But let's look at this entire situation, sort out the possibilities, and make a judgment on how to feel about trading one of our only current playmakers on offense. 

I made a post recently, seen here talking about our free agents and the potential of resigning them; the thought of trading Bowe really sparked my brain (hamster in the wheel) to think about the free agents next season as well, Bowe being one of them.  He has no doubt been a major playmaker for our team, and losing him will only set us back a high end WR for our offense; he has made vast improvements in his game, as he has become a legitimate big time red-zone target, is fantastic gaining yards after the catch, and blocks well down field.  He still has lapses in focus, drops balls (less frequently, but still happens), and isn't a polished enough route runner to break the double teams he has been seeing the last few weeks of the season.  But without a doubt, he has been one of biggest bright spots on our offense and deserved his Pro Bowl berth, as this game played in paradise Hawaii will be a showcase for every team to taste the "RainBowe", which will probably sting him a bit.

courtesy of bleacherreport.net

At this point in his career, and with his past history, Dwayne will more than likely command some big money in a long contract, and he will no doubt want that big money.  If I were Scott Pioli, I will be hoping for Bowe to put on a show at the Pro Bowl, showing everyone just how good he is.  Let's see the the D-Bowe show in all it's glory and ridiculousness; it's been undercover far too long this season!  Once this offseason begins, Pioli should immediately start engaging in discussions with Bowe's agent on extended him long term, with one year left on his contract.  The sooner the discussions begin, the better.  This will give Pioli a better idea of how much money ole D-Bowe is going to want, and like I've said before, there is no player on this team that carries themselves in a way that screams "I make the big plays, pay me the big money" more than Bowe does.  If there can be amicable talk of a reasonable contract figure that is suitable for both parties and it's clear that Bowe is dedicated to this team and wants to remain a Kansas City Chief, then let the negotiations continue until a deal can be struck.  Resigning a much improved player coming off the best season of his career is smart for this team as it tries to keep intact the foundation of this team.  The Chiefs will benefit from having the dynamic duo of "Bowe and Arrowhead".   

courtesy of photobucket.com

However, if the money can't be reasonable and Bowe exercises his player right to "strike while the iron is hot" and his "strike" is a little too hard, then it's time to start fishing, Mr. Pioli.  Float Bowe's name out to teams hungry for WR help early and often in 2011, see if you can strike while the iron is hot and catch some mighty offers to the tune of Brandon Marshall bounty; a couple of high draft picks would be nice, if I may be so bold.  Like I said, Bowe is coming off his best season, and he's in the last year of his current contract, and the longer you wait, the closer you get to the start of the season and the possibility of Bowe not returning to his 2010 form, which then would drop his value in trade.  Keep the 2010 memory and his Pro Bowl fresh in other team's heads and pull the trigger if a trade can be made. 

Looking at this from the flipside, there's no doubt that losing Bowe would hurt this offense, especially before establishing another playmaker at WR.  1kmilesfromkc researched and discussed Pioli's draft history of taking WRs and it's been few and far between with very little success.  So if Bowe goes, it's hard to say if the draft will bring us a potential top-level replacement.  Needless to say, WRs don't have the greatest track record of being impact players in their first years, so even if Pioli drafts a WR, it might be a couple of seasons before we see the dividends of that investment.  Matt Cassel has established quite the connection with Bowe over the course of this season, and it's clear that when teams scheme to take Bowe out of the offensive equation, it massively, severely, catastrophically hurts our passing offense.  Many would argue that keeping that connection and just adding more playmakers to help alleviate the attention that Bowe now draws would make more sense. 

I have a strong sense that in studying this seasons game film in the offseason, Pioli and Todd Haley will recognize the missing pieces on offense, just like they recognized the lack of speed on the team last offseason and went after it in the draft.  While it was pointed out vehemently by 1kmilesfromkc that Pioli doesn't draft WRs often, many people, myself included, pointed out that Pioli didn't draft defensive backs very high either, and the history of drafting safeties in the top 5 alone would almost certainly mean that Pioli would pass on Eric Berry picking at #5 in last year's draft.  How wrong I was on that one.  The history of WR busts in the draft, as I mentioned before, has been well-documented, and again, that alone would lend most to believe that Pioli would steer clear of drafting them high and often; this would concurrently lead people to believe that if Pioli already has an established WR in Bowe, then they shouldn't trade him away for unproven rookies.  Thinking back to last season, I can imagine that Pioli again will be targeting free agent WRs and possibly trying to make some trades for some big names.  Remember the almost-Boldin trade?  Acquiring more draft picks in a Bowe trade will only give us more ammunition for possible trades.  

Bowe controls his own destiny and his future on this team.  What will be important to Pioli and Haley in the offseason in terms of improving this team may include keeping Dwayne Bowe, but it might also include trading him away at the height of his success and avoiding the reemergence of D-Bowe, who definitely isn't a part of the "right 53".  Sometimes, talent can be trumped by attitude, just ask Randy Moss; and sometimes a team can be improved when ridding themselves of that talent and attitude, just ask the New England Patriots.  Bowe is a part of this team for now, and I support him and his success as a Chief.  No, I don't want to gut the team of the players that got us a division championship and a home playoff game, but I do want management to take advantage of any angle they can to keep improving this team for more championships and that elusive playoff victory.  Trade Bowe, extend Bowe, but whatever they do,don't let him walk out the door in 2012 without gaining something from this tremendous season he had.  So, Mr. Dwayne Lorenzo Bowe, I will be watching you. 

courtesy of photobucket.com